"Keep your mouth shut" - Ex-NFL coach Jeff Fisher slams Ron Rivera for creating false narratives
Ron Rivera and Jeff Fisher, two NFL head coaches whose best days are behind them in the eyes of many, find themselves back in the headlines.
Washington Commanders head coach Rivera recently responded to claims made by defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, who downplayed January's Capitol Riots, calling the events a "dust-up."
In response, the head coach fined and publicly condemned the defensive coordinator's statements. Del Rio was charged $100,000 and the fine was sent to the United States Capitol Police Memorial Fund.
Former Super Bowl-winning coach Jeff Fisher, however, slammed Rivera's decision and urged him to "keep his mouth shut" if he didn't fully understand matters.
Here's how he put it, according to OutKick The Tailgate via Sports Illustrated:
"Politics is getting into everything right now and it doesn't need to. The Rivera and Del Rio stuff, I mean come on, give us a break...Leave that stuff alone, there's too much going on right now. I went down the middle my whole career and I respected everybody for whatever they believed in and everyone should have an opportunity to talk about what they believe in."
Thoughts on Jack del Rio comments https://t.co/SFexUjFZoG
He went on to accuse the Commanders coach of creating false narratives.
"But to create narratives that aren't true...on first glance, I was a little disappointed with Ron. I was teammates with Ron, and for him to come out, it was like some speech writer wrote his statement. And it's not true."
He continued, incorrectly stating that there were no deaths on the night of the riots.
"There were no deaths, like he mentioned...there weren't deaths, and he put that in his statement...just tell the truth and if you don't know it then keep your mouth shut."
According to APnews, five people died on January 6 and hundreds of people were injured.
Ron Rivera’s attack on future hall of fame coach and patriot Jack Del Rio is disgusting, dishonorable, and unequivocally un-American.
I stand with Jack Del Rio 100%! https://t.co/ZYHyKaDX4v
Jeff Fisher's career as a coach in the NFL
Jeff Fisher played for the Chicago Bears from 1981-1984 before moving into coaching in 1986. Between 1986-1993, he served in various assistant and coordinator roles for the Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis (now Los Angeles) Rams, San Francisco 49ers and the Houston Oilers.
In 1994, he took over as interim head coach for the Oilers and was given the job permanently in 1995. He coached the team from 1995-2010, taking them to the Super Bowl in 1999. In total, he spent 17 years with the team, helping them get to the playoffs six times.
Fisher was present when the Houston Oilers transitioned into the Tennessee Oilers, and then finally to the Tennessee Titans that we know today.
After his time with the Titans ended, Fisher joined the St. Louis Rams and coached the team from 2012 to 2016. He was fired immediately after the team moved to Los Angeles. The Rams replaced him with current Super Bowl-winning head coach Sean McVay.